Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-01-12
INTERSTATE BILL.
DISCUSSION OF IT'S PROVISIONS
BY SENATOR STAMFORD.
ForcibIe Presentation Of the Reasons
Why the Bill Should Not
Become Law.

x
the able and forcible speech of Senator
Stanford, delivered Monday on the inter
state commerce bill
| shall speak to this bill as understand
| it. In what shall have to say shall en-
deayor to be entirely candid and correct.
| The importance of the subject is so great
that it can only be permanently settled
upon right principles. Anything else
means renewed and continued disturbance.
| The bill under consideration provides for
regulation on species OF properly not
| common to others. To see how Tar this is
| Unsuitable, it IS well for US to consider the
creation of railroads, and 10 understand
| how they are created.
| Railroad companies are organized under
the general laws of different States. They
have no exclusive privileges. They are as
sc Citations made by the general laws-laws
of which every citizen or any number of
| citiz ms may avail themselves equ lily with
| those forming the railroad company. In
| the mere fact of associations they may exist
| entirely without the aid of the State. The
association is as natural as it is for one man
| to call in his neighbors to help him raise
| his barn, or to roll sawlog, or to any bust
ness not inconsistent with the rights OF
others. The State gives by virtue of the
| incorporation laws nothing TO that incorpo-
| ration. Whatever of capital or labor that
| is contributed to them is entirely private.
The ownership of the labor and capital
provided is private; as much so as the
| bankers ownership of his money, the
farmers ownership of his farm, the team
ster's ownership OF his team. and so on. 1t
| is private labor that builds the railroad,
| from the first shovelful of dirt that is
thrown until the last spike is driven and
| the road is ready for business, and then
| when it is ready to operate it is all the pro-
| duct of individual or private property.
But some will say the right of way was
given. In regard to that | think there Is
some misapprebension. Those who desire
| to build a railroad of course must in some
| manner obtain the right of way on which
| to build it. They appeal to the State on
| the ground that the proposed investment is
| of highly beneficial character 10 the pub
| lie, and they ask the State to exercise its
right of eminent domain in order that the
| road may be built. The State can only eX-
ercise the right of eminent domain for the
benefit of the public, and then upon just
compensation to be made to the former for
whatever is taken. The State could not
take private property for the benefit of A,
B, C, D, e, + and others.
Now up to this time everything in the
| railroad has come from private source,
and the labor belongs to the individuals as
much as the labor of the man who tills his
farm. Control is the essence of ownership;
the value of the property is its income-pro-
ducing quality. This bill strikes at the
control and directly affects the income-pro-
ducing capacity of the property. Now, if
| the investment is legitimate, if its natures is
so highly beneficial that the State can do to
aid its construction what it could not do
| for the establishment of factory or any
other legitimate business, wherein is the
reason for the interference with the values
and the control of this property? No mo-
nopoly is given to IL, as it lnterferes with
no rights previously existing, and is never
used except when it offers an advantage to
the shipper or traveller superior to those ex-
listing before. If it is monopoly it is only
beneficial one, cheapentng and benefting
travel and commerce.
Now, if the State has given nothing to
this railroad company but what it has
given to every other citizen, lift has put no
money in. if the company has no mo-
| nopoly if its services are necessarily of
| beneficial character, why should the State
| interfere with its ownership, and with its
income producing qualities? If the State
or Congress impairs the value of this prop
erty, why should not compensation be
made TO the owners, and therefore when
| in putting into operation law that effects
values ought not compensation to be made
as is done when the Government exer-
cises Its right of eminent domain and
condemns the property of the people that
| the road may be built, which the company
pays for? By a reduction of its income
producing qualities the value of the very
right of way which the railroad company
| has paid for is affected.
The geography and topography of the
country made some discrimination a
| necessity. This bill denies to the railroad
| the right to charge less for the greater dis
| lance than for the shorter. | do not sup
pose that any railroad company ever car
| ried freight or passengers for the longer
| distance for less than the shorter, unless
competition or other circumstances be-
| yond the control of the company COM
| PEELED. The only alternative would be to
yield the business. 1t is principle of a
good railroad to reject no business that
offers, if it can possibly be done, so long as
| it will pay the additional expense conse-
quent upon its own. movement. A very
| large portion of the traffic of the country is
| done below the average cost. The fixed
| expenses and the semi-tixed expenses of
| railroad company are very large. They, as
well as the operating expenses, are in
cluded in the average cost of movement.
| The average of the operating expenses
| per ton is very different figure from that
| of the average cost-p per ton, the latter in
Guiding operating expenses, fixed expcn-
ses and semi-fixed expenses. Thus take
the business from the Atlantic to the Pa
| c.fic or from the Pacific TO the Atlantic and
we find competition by the Isthmus of
Panama and competition by Cape Horn.
| We find overland routes of different length,
| of different grades ard curves, varying in
| the volume Of business and in the expense
of operating. We have very different
| average expense of movement. The longer
! road must compete with the shorter; the
road with the heaviest grade aud cuts, must
compete with the road having large vol
| ume of business. The cost of fuel is a
very important item, varying on the differ
ent railroads. yet, however, the road hay-
| ing the lesser volume of business, the road
| having the longest line, having the highest
grade and curves, and having the highest
! cost of fuel, will be in competition with
| and will have to carry as cheaply as one
| having the shorter line, the easiest grades,
| the cheapest fuel and the largest volume of
| business. All these are factors that deter
mine the rates at which the railroad may
possibly do business, however meager the
profits.
All the overland lines OF railroads ind
their rates very largely controlled and in
! fuenced by the rates by way of the
| Isthmus of Panama and of Cape Horn
Meeting that competition and being willing
to accept small profit where larger can
not be had, they carry along the line be-
| tween the two extreme points the same
character of freight at less rates than it is
| carried from East to West or from West to
East to intermediate places. Thus, because
of competition, freight going from New
York to San Francisco may pass over the
various lines of road, making up through
| line for perhaps half their regular rates.
say from New York to Buffalo, from
Buffalo to Chicago, from Chicago to
Omaha, from Omaha to Salt Lake and so
on to lis destination on the Pacific coast
No profit is so small as to be despised.
Business is done at that rate rather than
rot to do it at all.
| Take a more marked illustration. The
Southern Pacific St kes the Atlantic waters
| at a much less distance than any of its
more northern competitors. 1t has line
of easy gradient, comparatively, and it
completes not only with its northern rivals,
but more particularly with the Cape Horn
fand Isthmus of Panama routes, because of
| its shorter line and easy gradients. In
| this competition ii often takes freight be-
| tween the two oceans as low as $40, while